Improved brick-machine



2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

s. R'IGBY, 3d. BRICK MACHINE.

Patented June 14, 1870.

cited ews strut. iljiire,

TSETH RIGBY, 3D, OF NEWCASTLE, PENNSYLVANIA.-

Letters Patent No. 104,354, dated June 14, 1870.

' g IMPROVED BRICK-MACHINE.

, The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and making'part of the same.

To all who mi! may concern Be it known that I, Sara mess, 3d, of Newcastle, i in the State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Brick-Machin i; and- I do,

hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference beinghad to the accompanying drawing and letters of reference toughness is with difficulty introduced within the mold. Hence, withoutexception, so far as! know,

the material made use of in other brick-machines, is untempered clay, slightly moistened, which easily enters the molds, but makes very poor brick, which readily crumble and break when brought into use.

To enable those skilled in the art to make and use my invention, 1 now proceed to describe i-tsconstrnction and operation.

4 Similar letters in the drawing refer to like parts.

.My invention has-for its object to receive tempered mud and convert the same into brick ready for drying. This invention consists mainly inzplungcis, sliding in guideways, and operated by shaft-arms, cams, or the like, in such. manner as to collect themnd recciiied between the plnngeis andforce the same forward beneath a regulator to-a press-mold; also, in the combination of itwo pressing dies, one moving downward and the other moving upward, with a mech anism which holds the upper one stationary, and at the same time'throws the lower one upward, in order to the final compression of the brick between the two,

and in sundry other combinationsami arrangements hereinafter-fully described.

In the drawing- I is the frame-work of thcmacliinc. (l, a shaft mounted transversely of the 'i'ramc, fur nished at each end with. a cam-plate, b, and bearing, between the cam-plates, arms I: c c c c, anda cam, cl. The cam-plates b, which are of the same dimensions,

and are placed in similar positions relative to the shaft a, strike, as the shaft is rotated by any suitable power applied to the crank 14, pins 0 c projecting horizon tally from arms 0 eextending upward from shafts h 1g, mounted in suitable hearings on the side pieces of the frame I, and at right angles with the shait a,

The effect of the striking of the cam-plates b against thepius e is -to throw the arms 0 inward, and rotate the shafts h.

After the canrplates have passed, springs e I? throw the arms c outward,rocking the shait 'h.

a brick.

A second arm, in, projects upward from each shaft h, is jointed at its upper extremity to the outer end of one of the two plung'ers Z1, and communicates to its plunger a reciprocating motion.

Q The plnngers l 'l slide in guide-ways m m placed transversely ofthe machine, parallel to the shaft a. The guide-w. ys m are in line with, and each of them is partially beneath the box, which receives the-tempered mud, and which may be provided with a stirrer to force the mud down into the open space between the plungers l. The plungers Z are arranged tomovc so far that, when they. are the extremities of their inward throws,; the space between them is equal to the lengths of one bricle Hence these plnngers shape the ends of'the bricks.

The plungerslare provided with sharpened horizontal flanges, l projecting forward from their upper and inner corners, which; cut the mud as the ,plnngers advance toward each" other, and have'a tendency to keepitdown and retain a quantity snflicient to form One side ot'thc brick isi'orlned at the same time against the end of the plunger 0, which slides ina guidehvay, 0', between and atright angles to the plnngers I, and is operated by the arms c of the shaft a coming in contact as the shaft rotates with the bar 1', which is attached to the under side of the plunger 0, and passes beneath and extends up in the form of a horn r'fon the opposite side of the shaft a. Thearm 0? is so placed on thcshaft that it does not strike" the bar r'nntil the plunger-s l l have compressed the mud to a bricks length. Then the. arm 0" strikes the plate and causes the plunger 0 to-moveforwan], carrying beforeit the mud collected between said plnngers. The plunger 0 has a, flange-,7, constructed and operating similarly to the flanges of theplnngc s l The plunger 0 traverses-the open space 1 1, and delivers i't-s quantity of mud to the hex s, which lies on the opposite side ot'-'said space in linewith the guideway 0.- At this point the arm 0 ceasesto exert a pressure on ,the plate 1', and the plunger 0 conse quently stops. Simultaneously with the stopping of the plunger, a pin of the cam 11 strikes an arm extending' upward from the. bar t, which forms one of the series of parallel bars located beneath the guide-ways m 0', and between the two inclosing plates u it placed lengthwise of the frame I upon the cross-bars of the same.

The bar I. i s-rigidly connected by a vertical standard passing through 'a longitudinal slot in the bottom of the gpide-way o, with a plunger, 1:, inclosed within" the plunger 0, and of a proper wi lth to slide easily in the box .9. The striking of the cam (l. against the bar t causes the plunger 1: to emerge from the plunger o, and traverse the box 3, which is of a width a little drawn backward. by the springs e at the same time that the plunger c is moving forward.

At the end of the box s is a horizontal cross-bar, s, nttaehod,by standards, to a horizontalbcam, s, which is connected by screws s s with a girder, S, in such manner that, by means of the screws, the cross-bar 5 may be raised or lowered. Hence, the said crossbar forms a regulator with respect to the amountof mud that may be thrust beneath it by the plunger '11.

A flap, w, is hinged to the beam s", and extends between the sides of the box 3, and heingformed with an inclined lower side, it readily yields, so as to allow any excess of mod that cannot pass under the regulator s to escape upward and be deposited on the plunger e, whenceit is swept off into the open space 1 by the retraction of the plunger 1: within the plunger 0, such retraction being effected the moment the pin of the cam d passes by a spring acting on the bar t. Immediately upon the reception by the plum nor a of the plunger 1;, the former is drawn back to its original position by the arm 0, striking the horn Alfthrce plungers are now in the places where they were at the connnenccincnt of the movements just described.

A charge of mud sufficient for the formation of one brick has been thrust under the regulator s by the plunger v. By the continued rotation of the shaft a, plus projecting inward from the arms 0 c are made to strike the under sides of lovers is x pivoted to the outer sides ofthe inclosiug plates a ll; Y

The opposite extremities ofthe'loveisxa are jointed to the vertical sidotpieccs of the frame which bears, attached beneath its uppcrgirdery, the molding block -31, and supported upon the same girder, the vertical standards 31* y, from horizontal arms of which, projectin}; over the regalatotgh'dcr b, are suspended two vertical rods 4 3f, to'thc lower ends of which is attached a plate, 3 whose netherside is sharpened into an edge, and which passes through a slot in the crossbcam s and regulator 5.

i As the arms 0 0 rise in the revolution of the shaft 1!, theylit't the arms of the levers 1.x, estending above the. shaft, and depress the lever arms, which arejointed to the mold-block frame, drawing the latter downward, which'nnwementcauses the plate 3 to descend through the regulator :3" t0 the bottom ofthe box 3, cutting straight t'ln-ough the mud therein contained.

Springs 31" y", coiled around the standards y press the editor downu-ard with force sufiicient to carry it through the mud, and yet not so great but that the cutter may yield to a'root or stone in the mud, which it cannot'scver. Springs y, beddediu lugs it, that extend downward from the inclosing plates, and bearing against the lower ends of the side pieces of the moldblock frame, throw-tho latter, with the cuttery, up as soon as the pins of the arms 0 0 clear the lovers 9:

Simultaneously willrthe descent of the cutter y, the plungers l l are thrown once more inward, in the manner before explained, Immediately upon the rise of the cutter the plunger .0 advances again, pushing before it anothcrchargo'of mod that is thrust beneath "the regulator, in the same manncras the first one,

which, by this second charge, is moved forward from beneath the regulator by the width of one brick, which movement leaves it directly beneath the molding die and resting upon the plate .1, whih forms the botroinof the box s, and is attached to and slides with .the plun cr 0, the upper surface of the plate's'heing flush with the bottom of the guidc-ways m. A moldframe, .2, is formed transvcrsely in the" plate near its end. v

Inuncdiatcly after the charge is moved forward be nca'th the molding die, the plate 2' is drawn toward the shalt by the retraction of the plunger ,0. The charge is prevented from moving back with the plate by the next charge in itsrcar, whlehis compressed beneath the regulator s, and rests upon a fixed metal plate, a, placed beneath the regulator and-above the plate 2. The charge, therefin'c, remains stationary until the mold-flame z is drawn under it, when the charge is pressed down into the mold-frame by the descent of the molding dlo y, which movement is offected in'the manner bclbrecxplaincd.

In the frame :2, by the operation of the die, the charge is properly molded, and partially compressed. As soon as the die rises out of the mold, the plate 2, receives motion in the opp its direction from the ad-, rance of the plunger 0, an -t'he mold-frame with the brick in it, is carried out beneath the pressing-die A.

The pressing-die A is attached beneath the upper girder A of a flame, which's'l'ides vertically in guide-' ways madeiii the outer sides of the inelosing plates to u. The same frame is provided, at its lower end, with another girder, A, and is operated by a pin of the arm a of the shaft 21-, striking and lifting the lever B, whose fulcrum is a horizontal rod, 1), which passes transversely through the lugs 11.

The lever B is divided into two branches fi'om a point near its fulcrum, and the extremities of the branches are jointed to the lower parts of the side pieces A? of the pressingdiame. Spring plates bedded in the lugs n, and bearingagainst the ends of the side pieces A, throw them up as soon as the pin of the arm 0 clears the lever B.

The mold-frame plate ,1 slides on horizontal ledges formed on the inner sides'of the iuolosing plates u. The bottomless press-mold C is constructed between the plates '1! directly beneath the die A.

When the bottomless mold-frame .2, containing a molded brick, has arrived,- as above explained, beneath the-die A, and direetlyabove thepressniold G, the die-A descends and drives the brick downinto the press-mold. t

A die, 1), is stationed within the press-mold, being aiiixcd to the top of a staff, I), which passostlu'ough the girder A of the pressing-frame, and whose lower extremity, which is provided with a iiictionaoller, rests upon an arm, E, that is rigidly attached at one end to the lower part of a standard, E, mounted between the lugs u on trunnions extending into the same.

A proiection from the upper eud of the standard entrs a slot in the bar E, which forms one of the series of parallel bars sliding between the inclosing plate 1!, and is operated by the cam (I, striking the hero's of the bar As soon as the cam clears said horn, the weight of the arm E and die D draws the bar back again. I 7

As the die A descends into the mold G, pressing the brick downward, the die I) retire-s before it, such retirement being due to the we'ightof the die, and the sinking of the arm E beneath it, and this movement continues until the born c" of the bar E comes in corn tact directly with the shaft (1, the cam (I having passed The die A moves downward suliicieutly after the die D comes to a stand to give the brick a partial compression betw en thetwo dies. I

During the descent of the pressing-frame, the arm 0" of the shaft a strikes an arm, h, projecting upward from a.lcvci',.H, placed between the lugs u, entering at one end a slot in the block'H', which extends downward from the underside of the cross-piece I- of the main frame, passing near its middle through the slot in, the standard E, and forked at its other extremity, so as to embrace the staff 1). The arm 0 imparts to the lever 11' a slight motion in the direction of the pressing-flame,- during which motion-tho lever entersa notch, (0?, cut in onesidc of the lower-girder A" of the pressiug'die. Atthc point'whcre the downward motion of the pressing-frame ceases, a pin of the arni c strikes a curved metal horn, 7t", projecting upward from the arm It, and thus causes thelcvcr II to travel still further in the not-elm",whiclrmoreinent stretches a spring, h, that connects a staple inthe lever with a pin in the block H the tendency of which spring is to d awthe lever H- downward. A plate, It, jointed at both ends connects the lever with the arm E, The

forked extremity of the lever H having arrived at the end of the notch a, the lever is prevented from moving further in this direction, antljby the continued pressure of'the pin of .thc arm c 'npon the horn 74?, the lever is raised, the end in 'the slot in the block ris- I ing therein. The forked extremity of the lever then 'ccnseqnently receives another, and a final compression between the upperand lower dies, immediately after which the pin ot' th e arm 0 clears thelerer B and the pressing-frame flies upward,-withdrawing the die A entirely from within the press-mold. Then the cam (I strikesthe horn c" of the bar E, and causes thelatr ter to were in thedirection to throw the arm 19 iip ward. The arm E lifts thestafi' D and the lower die 1) until the upper surface of the die is flush with the guide-way, in which the mold-frame plate- 5 slides. 'lhe return of the mold-flame bearing a' fresh brick to he pressed, sweeps the finished brick Off the snrl'ace of the die 1) upon the table or. hand placed at the end of ile machine, whence the brick is removed to be dried.

From the foregoing description, it; will be under stood that, in this machine, the mud is subjected to separate and snceessire compressions in the open space between the plnnge -s in the me: s, beneath the regnlater in the mold-frame, and in the pressing-flame; also, that, as long' as theregnlator remains unchanged, the same quantity of mini goes into the composition of each brick. l

p I claim as my invention-- 1, The regnlator s, in combination with the plunger-c, box s, and die y, said parts being constructed and arranged to operate as described.

2. The plnngers l, sliding in gnideewaysm, in comhination with the plunger 0 sliding in the guide-way -9', and with the plunger {0 sliding in and out; ef;-t-he plunger 0, snbstantia-llyin the manner and for the purpose specified.

3. The combination of the dies A D, standard E, provided with the arm E and the lever H, when the latter is operated by a cam, (I, in such manner as to hold the dieA down and throw the die I) up, sub; stnnt-ially as explained.

4. The hinged plate w, in combination with knife y, regulator s plunger v, box s, and die y, said parts being constructed and arranged to operate as described,

- SETH RIGBY, 3n.

Witnesses:

"JAs, D. Bn son,

SAmuEn VANTTERN. 

